How to Chop in Table Tennis: Defensive Backspin That Wins Points
Modern table tennis is attack-obsessed, which is exactly why a good chop is so disruptive. A chop is a defensive stroke that returns the ball with heavy backspin, usually from a few steps back. Done well, it forces loopers to lift every ball — and one tired lift into the net is all you need.
What a chop actually does
Where a drive brushes up the back of the ball (topspin), a chop slices down and under it. The returning backspin makes your opponent’s next attack drop unless they lift hard — and the harder they lift, the higher and slower their ball comes back to you. That’s the chopper’s trade: you give up initiative, you get errors and setups.
Backhand chop technique
- Take a step or two back from the table; the chop needs falling-ball timing.
- Raise the paddle to chest height, face tilted open (upward).
- As the ball drops past its peak, slice down and forward under it — imagine shaving a layer off the ball’s bottom.
- Contact thin for maximum spin; contact thicker for a safer, deader ball.
- Follow through toward the net, staying low.
Forehand chop
Same principle, less natural angle: rotate side-on, take the ball later and lower than a forehand drive, and slice under with an open face. Most defenders chop backhand and counter-attack forehand — chopping both wings is an advanced specialty.
The chop block (close-to-table weapon)
You don’t need to retreat to use backspin defensively. The chop block takes an incoming loop right off the bounce with a short downward chopping motion instead of a passive block. The result is a low, skidding ball with mixed spin that arrives faster than a normal chop — a nasty surprise for one-speed loopers.
Equipment matters more here than anywhere
Choppers typically pair an inverted rubber on the forehand with long pips or a slower defensive rubber on the backhand, on a flexible blade. If you’re serious about defensive play, our rubber guide covers spin-friendly options, and the paddle roundup flags control-oriented builds. Learn what the incoming spin is doing first though — our spin guide explains how to read it.
Practice progression
Start with backhand chop against a partner’s (or robot’s) steady topspin feed. Aim for ten consistent chops, then vary depth. Then alternate: chop, chop, counter-hit — the switch from defense to attack is what makes choppers dangerous.
Benjamin Fink is the founder and lead table tennis reviewer at PingPongReviewed. He has played competitive club table tennis for over 17 years, including national-level tournaments, and has personally play-tested hundreds of paddles, rubbers, blades, tables, and training robots.
Every recommendation he publishes follows the site’s hands-on evaluation process — see How We Test for the full methodology. When he isn’t reviewing gear, Benjamin coaches beginners and writes training guides to help recreational players improve faster.
